Nordicum - Real Estate Annual Finland 2015 - Page 15

Pasila, located just a couple of kilometres north from downtown Helsinki, is
already a tremendous traffic hub: this is
where all the trains stop, and buses and
trams swoop by the station non-stop. Still,
the surrounding area has not lived up to its
full potential and is ripe for development,
opening as much as three city blocks for
new ideas and energy,
By the turn of the decade, YIT aims
to turn Tripla District into “Helsinki’s second city centre”. The versatile urban complex will feature offices, a shopping centre, apartments, hotels and the Helsinki metropolitan area’s new-and-improved public
transport hub, says Tapio Salo, Senior Project Director of Tripla.
“We recognise that we have been
entrusted with a unique location in the entire
country and want to create a hallmark district for Helsinki,” Salo lays down the game
plan.
Smooth Sailing
Tripla District will be completed by 2021
and will encompass the area around the current Central Pasila station. It will link both
East and West Pasila and the planned highrises on its south side to the new residential
area on its north side. Salo reports that the
process is well underway:
“When everything goes well, we will
have an authorised zoning plan in March
2015,” he says, adding that the planning
effort is actually a bit ahead of schedule at
the moment. He credits this to the City of
Helsinki which is committed to realising
Tripla District in a big way:
“We have great collaboration with the
City and are very motivated to keep going
forward,” Salo says. The next stop after a
legit zoning plan is to apply for a building
permit before summer – and then it’s on to
the actual construction. “We want to start
construction in the autumn,” says Salo.
Big on Connectivity
Both Juha Kostiainen and Tapio Salo are of
the opinion that the Tripla District will bring
about connectivity which will be unparalleled in the whole country. As a consequence, the new Pasila station will be the
busiest railway station in the land.
At the same time, the new Ring Rail
Line will connect Tripla and Pasila to the
Helsinki Airport. The City Rail Loop, once
completed, will connect Pasila, downtown
Helsinki, Hakaniemi and Töölö. And if Hel-
sinki should ever build a second metro line
– running north-south – a reservation has
already been made to build a metro station
here.
Salo points out that using public transport as an anchor for various functions is
a strong trend in Europe and should be a
winner here, too: “Linking trains, trams and
buses in a new way to create a true traffic
hub for the metropolitan area is what we
want to do – and make it as convenient as
possible for the citizens,” Salo says.
Commercial Edge
As it turns out, the very same citizens are
consumers, too. With this in mind, YIT is
launching ‘Mall of Tripla’ which promises
to lead the way into a new era of retail. Comprising almost 85,000 square metres of commercial space, Mall of Tripla will connect
physical and virtual stores, bringing sellers
and buyers together.
Kostiainen and Salo believe th